75 Birds, Butterflies & Little Beasts to Knit & Crochet [Paperback]

Lesley Stanfield (Author)

Book Description

Release date: March 15, 2011

Expand your knit and crochet repertoire with this menagerie of miniature bugs and beasts: from creepy crawlies and weird wrigglers to beautiful butterflies and splendid metallic-thread dragonflies. Use them to decorate clothes and accessories, give them as gifts---or use to decorate your gift wrap and greeting cards.

Everyone of these cute little beasts is thoughtfully displayed in a directory at the front of the book. And each is cross-referenced to a complete pattern and/or chart at the back of the book, with information on stuffing, finishing, and yarn requirements.

You’ll also find a mixture of fun and fabulous ideas for using the creatures in a range of styles and settings: children’s designs, quirky homewares, and elegant fashion and accessories.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"My favorite projects are the fruit and vegetables. The designs look so realistic! These would be great to make and include in a child's play kitchen. They are a much better option than the hard, plastic play food you often see. One thing that I love about this book is that each project is presented with two types of instructions---a chart and written instructions. People learn best different ways, so I really appreciate that the author has included both." ---Wee Share blog

"Thinking about how to use these designs will get you brainstorming....I could see how this could become addicting." ---Paula, Moliver, Hartford Knitting Examiner

"Just when you thought you have run out of projects, along comes a book like Lesley Stanfield's 75 Birds, Butterflies & Little Beasts to Knit and Crochet." ---Petals to Picot blog

About the Author

LESLEY STANFIELD has authored a number of books on knitting and crochet, including the bestseller 100 Flowers to Knit & Crochet. She is a long-time hand knitting designer and has been the knitting editor of several women’s magazines.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin (March 15, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 031265605X
• ISBN-13: 978-0312656058
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 8.7 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #65,437 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #80 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Crafts & Hobbies > Needlecrafts & Textile Crafts > Crocheting

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

88 of 89 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Show me the Birds! April 7, 2011

By College Kid

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

There are knitting patterns in the world for owls, penguins, geese, peacocks, parrots, and cute little Easter chicks, why couldn't this book have some? The title says BIRDS, where are the birds? There are TWO BIRDS in this whole book, and one of them looks quite weird. The one good bird in this book, the one on the cover, could have been altered slightly to be a cardinal, a canary, a red-wing blackbird, and scaled up to be a crow. (I can't do this myself, that is why I buy books with patterns in them.) The author is obviously a knitting genius - because she creates amazing flowers - why couldn't she do that?

This book has beautiful pictures, nice layout, good instructions not just for how to knit the pattern, but also how to assemble the pieces. So, good knitting book. I love the fact that there are verbal descriptions AND a chart of how to assemble the peices. But the patterns were not what I expected. When they say "75 Birds, Butterfiles and little beasts" they mean "TWO BIRDS - one of which looks quite odd, some eggs, and a nest" and 1/3 to 1/2 of the 79 designs are actually plants, fruits, veggies, grains, leaves, flowers, etc. Plus some snowflakes and a "Christmas Star" ornament. I was really hoping for about 70 BIRDS AND BUGS and maybe those pink flowers from the cover... not 2 birds, some bugs, and a ton of leaves and flowers and produce.

I bought this because I loved her flower-pattern book so much and I wanted to see what she did with Birds and Bugs. I feel like this is not as good as the flower book. It doesn't really add much to the library, to buy this second book. Unless you want to knit some fruits and veggies. If they sold it under the title "More Flowers And Friends" it would be a five-star addition to the first book she did with the flowers. Now the flowers have some bugs, and mushrooms, and squash to keep them company. But when sold as "Birds and...." it is a three star book, because there ARE NO BIRDS.

35 of 36 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Patterns for Decorative Ornaments and Appliques March 17, 2011

By Lynne E. TOP 50 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

A delightful collection of patterns for decorative ornaments and appliques, suitable for (1) framing, (2) adding to containers, hatbands, and wreaths, or (3) wearing as lapel jewelry. Some of the patterns are for three-dimensional objects, like the knitted Blue Tit bird, the crocheted ear of corn, or the knitted striped caterpillar. Other patterns are for flat decorations, like the knitted butterflies, the crocheted strawberry leaf, or the crocheted dragonfly.

The patterns are grouped into themes: Spring Things, Hedgerow Flowers, Leaf Fall, Bugs and Beasties, Butterflies, Rock Pool, Vegetable Basket, Woodland Walk, and Midwinter. Probably I'll never want to make a stuffed slug, housefly, or mushroom, but the ladybug is cute, and the patterns for shells, acorns, Easter eggs, fruits, and vegetables will come in handy for holiday or seasonal decoration projects. The flat "specimen butterflies" (peacock, large blue, fritillary) are delightful.

All of the patterns have written-out instructions, and the crocheted patterns also have charts. There is some very basic how-to-knit and how-to-crochet material at the beginning of the book, but this is a pattern book, not a technical manual. Most of the patterns look like they would be fairly easy to knit or crochet--a notable exception is the charming three-dimensional Blue Tit. I give this book 5 stars, because of the clear instructions, the full-color close-up photos, and the sheer variety of interesting "things" included in the patterns.

If what you're looking for is patterns for knitted and crocheted pieces that can be used either individually (as appliques) or joined together into larger projects, then you might be interested in another newly-published pattern collection: 150 Knit and Crochet Motifs: Anything-but-Square Shapes for Garments, Accessories, Afghans, and Throws.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Cute, interesting but frustrating instructions May 18, 2011

By J. Korte

Format:Paperback

As is the case with Stansfield's other books, the items in this book are imaginative, cute & pretty realistic.
However, the patterns contain NO GUIDANCE as to the gauge or size of needle/hook to use and the recommended yarn weights are not standard.

Many of the items recommend DK weight yarn which is standard except that British DK is often listed as equivalent to US Worsted so which is it?? (this is a British author & book)

Other weights specified include 3-ply, 4-ply, tapestry yarn etc. One item even recommends "metalic yarn, used double"--who knows what that weight means!!

Many references state that British 4-ply is US sport wt and 3-ply is US fingering wt so I hope this helps someone.

This would not matter too much as for the small amounts required, one can experiment but folks usually expect more guidance from a pattern book. Furthermore, some items have patterns to be traced and cut out for portions of the item (e.g. bees wings) so the gauge is important for these parts to be to scale.

Giving a gauge for each pattern which is the modern norm for knitting and crochet patterns would certainly have helped. A statement early in the book stating that British standards are used and giving US/International equivalents and gauges would not have been too much to ask either.

Even with the problem of Birds in the title when there are only 2 birds in the book, I'd have given this book 5 stars if it hadn't been for the gauge ambiguity. However, this is such a glaring omission that I've downgraded the book to 3 stars.

If you are a fairly prolific crocheter/knitter with lots of scraps, really want to make these items and are willing to experiment, the book is worth owning. However, if you have to purchase yarns to make these items or if you expect certainty from a pattern, you will find the book frustrating.